Draft-rigging for railway-cars.



2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

PATBNTED SEPT. 19, 190-5.

J. F. OGONNOR.

DRAFT RIGGING FOR RAILWAY [JARSn APPLICATION FILED JUNE 10, 1905.

N0. 799,867. PATENTED SEPT. l9, 1905.

J. F. O'CONNOR.- DRAFT RIGGING FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 10, 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEBT 2.

I 2 awwm moaiw, a (mum no. More LIYHGGRAP NERS, msmucmn. n c

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN F. OCONNOR, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO W. H. MINER DRAFT-RIGGING FOR RAILWAY-CARS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 19, 1905.

Application filed June 10,1905. Serial No. 264,563.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it knownthat I, JOHN F. OCoNNoR, a citizen of the United States, residing in Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Draft-Rigging for Railway-Cars, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in draft-rigging for railway-cars.

The object of my invention is to provide a draft-rigging of a simple, strong, eflicient, and du rable construction operating to cushion both pullingand bufiing strains by both a frictional and a spring resistance and which will be compact in form and occupy little room and capable of being cheaply manufactured.

My invention consists in the means I employ to practically accomplish this object or result-that is to say, it consists, in connection with the coupler draw-bar, its extension strap or yoke, and side plates or stop-castings, of a series of open end nesting curved platesprings, the open ends of contiguous springs breaking joints with each other, and a pair of movable spring holders or boxes, each preferably composed of two halves or sections secured together and each having a curved bearing-face adapted to bear against the nesting curved plate-springs and operating to contract and compress said plate-springs and cause the same to frictionally slide in respect to each other as the springs are contracted in diameter and compressed by the movement of one of the movable spring holders or boxes toward the other, the rear spring holder or box moving with the draw-bar in pulling, while the front spring holder or box is held stationary by the stop-castings, and the front spring holder or box moving with the draw-bar in bufling, while the rear one is held stationary by the stop-castings, thus cushioning the drawbar by both a spring and a frictional resistance.

My invention also consists in providing the top and bottom plates of the spring holders or boxes with ribs or guides which cooperate with notches in the upper and lower edges of the nesting curved plate-springs to keep the nesting springs in proper relation to each other.

My invention further consists in the novel construction of parts and devices and in the novel combinations of parts and devices herein shown and described.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in central longitudinal section, of a draft-rigging embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view, partly in horizontal section, on line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of one of'the curved plate-springs, and Fig. 5 is adetail perspective view of one of the halves or sections of one of the spring holders or boxes.

In the drawings, A represents the center sills or other longitudinal frame-pieces of a car, to which the side plates or stop-castings of the draft-rigging are secured.

A is the front or end sill, and A the carryiron.

B is the coupler, B the draw-bar, and B the draw-bar strap or yoke.

C C are the side plates or stop-castings, each having a front stop C and a rear stop C for the movable spring holders or boxes to abut against and each being provided with an upper integral guide C and a lower removable guide-plate C, secured thereto by bolts C having nuts C and keys C D D D D D D are nesting curved platesprings, each preferably substantially cylindrical in form when contracted or compressed, so that its open meeting ends d d abut together, said meeting ends d (Z, however, normally remaining at a distance apart or with an open space d between the meeting ends,

so as to permit of the necessary contraction of each spring. The set of nesting springs D have their open ends at the rear, while the nesting springs D have their open ends at the front, the two sets thus alternating with each other and together constituting a cooperating series of nesting curved plate-springs, with the open or meeting ends of contiguous springs breaking joints or alternating with each other. Each of the springs D and D is furnished with a central guide-notch d at its middle portion and with terminal guidenotches d at its end portions to receive the guides or ribs f on the top and bottom plates f of the spring holders or boxesF F. Each of the spring holders or boxes F F has a curved or semicircular bearing-face f which is preferably concentric with the circumference of the outer nested springs D D when the same are contracted to their full extent.

Each of the spring holders or boxes F F is preferably made in two sections or halves, so that the lower section or half F or F of each spring holder or box may be removed from its fellow, the two halves or parts of each spring holder or box being secured together by removable rivets f. Each of the spring holder and compressor boxes F F is preferably furnished at its curved bearing-face with a separate-piece wearing-shoef of steel or other suitable metal, to take the wear and friction. The curved shoe f fits in suitable recesses f with which the spring holders and compressors F F are provided.

In operation under buffing strains the rear spring holder and compressor F is held stationary by the rear stops on the stop-castings C, and the front compressor F moves with the draw-bar, thus causing each of the nesting open-ended curved plate-springs D D to be compressed and contracted in diameter, and thereby causing the contiguous and alternating springs D D to frictionally slide in respect to each other as the same are contracted in diameter, the cooperating notches on the springs and guides or ribs on the spring holders or compressors preventing any of the springs from rotating axially. In pulling the operation is the same, but the reverse, the front spring holder and compressor F being now held stationary and the rear one moving with the draw-bar. Just before the springs are compressed and contracted in diameter to their fullextent or until their meeting ends abut together the meeting faces f f of the spring holders or compressors F F meet or abut together, thus positively limiting the compression of the springs. In both pulling and buffing the frictional resistance, due to the sliding movement upon each other of the two sets of alternating springs D and D, cooperates with the spring or elastic resistance of the springs themselves in cushioning the movement of the draw-bar. It will also be observed that in my invention each of the several nesting cylindrical or curved springs D D exerts its full spring or elastic resistance and also that the frictional resistance, due to the sliding movement of contiguous springs upon each other, is multiplied as many times as there are pairs of surfaces in contact as the pressure is transmitted from each spring to its adjacent spring.

Another great advantage of my invention is that while the movement of the draw-bar is in practice ordinarily necessarily limited to about two inches by my arrangement of the nesting cylindrical plate-springs the contracting movement of each spring and-its frictional or sliding movement in respect to contiguous springs may be as much as 3.1416 times the movement of the draw-bar, as the springs contract and slide circumferentially, While the draw-bar moves diametrically. This greatly increases the absorbing power of my device, as the work done in overcoming frictional resistance is in direct proportion to the distance through which the frictional devices move.

I claim 1. In adraft-rigging, the combination with the draw-bar and side plates or stops, of two alternating sets of nesting open-ended cylindrical plate-springs, and a pair of movable spring holder and compressor boxes having each a curved bearing-face engaging the nesting cylindrical plate-springs and operating to contract and compress the same, and cause them to frictionally slide in respect to each other as they are contracted in diameter and compressed by the movement of one of said spring holder and compressor boxes toward the other, substantially as specified.

2. In a draft-rigging, the combination with the draw-bar and side plates or stop-castings, of two alternating sets of nesting open-ended curved plate-springs, and a pair of movable spring holder and compressor boxes having each a curved bearing-face engaging the nesting curved plate-springs and operating to contract and compress the same, and cause them to frictionally slide in respect to each other as they arecontracted in diameter and compressed by the movement of one of said spring holder and compressor boxes toward the other, said curved plate springs being provided with guide-notches, and said spring holder and compressor boxes having cooperating guides or ribs to prevent axial rotation of the springs, substantially as specified.

3. In a draft-rigging, the combination with the draw-bar and side plates or stop-castings, of two alternating sets of nesting open-ended curved plate-springs, and a pair of movable spring holder and compressor boxes having each a curved bearing-face engaging the nesting curved plate-springs and operating to contract and compress the same, and cause them to frictionally slide in respect to each other as they are contracted in diameter and compressed by the movement of one of said spring holder and compressor boxes toward the other, each of said spring holder and compressor boxes being composed of an upper and lower section, substantially as specified.

4. In a draft-rigging, the combination with the draw-bar and side plates or stop-castings, of two alternating sets of nested open-ended cylindrical plate-springs, and a pair of movable spring holder and compressor boxes having each a curved bearing-face engaging the nesting cylindrical plate-springs and operating to contract and compress the same, and cause them. to frictionally slide in respect to each other as they are contracted in diameter and compressed by the movement of one of said spring holder and compressor boxes toward the other,each of said spring holder and compressor boxes having a wearing-shoe on its curved bearing-face, substantially as specified.

5. The friction spring resistance draft-rigging for railway-cars, comprising in combination a draw-bar, stops, nesting cylindrical open-ended plate-springs, arranged in two sets, the springs of one set alternating and intermeshing with those of the other set, and movable spring holders or compressors having bearing-faces engaging said nesting cylindrical plate-springs, substantially as specified.

6. The friction and spring resistance draftrigging for railway-cars, comprising in combination a draw-bar, stop-castings, nesting curved plate-springs, and two movable spring holders and compressors having curved bearing-faces engaging said nesting curved platesprings, and means for preventing the curved nesting springs from rotating axially, substantially as specified.

7. The friction and spring resistance draftrigging for railway-cars, comprising in combination a draw-bar, stop-castings, nesting curved plate-springs, and movable spring holders or compressors having curved bearing-faces engaging said curved plate-springs, said spring holders and compressors each being composed of an upper and lower section, substantially as specified.

8. The combination with the draw-bar and side plates or stop-castings, of a pair of movable spring holders and compressors having top and bottom plates furnished with ribs'or guides, of two sets of alternating open-ended curved plate-springs nesting together within and between said spring holders and compressors, the open meeting ends of one set of said springs being at the front and the open meeting ends of the other set being at the rear, and said springs having guide-notches at both their upper and lower edges engaging said guide-ribs on the top and bottom plates of said spring holders and compressors, substantially as specified. Y

9. The friction and spring resistance draftrigging for railway-cars, comprising in combination a draw-bar, stop-castings, nesting curved plate-springs, and two movable spring holders and compressors having curved bearing-faces engaging said nesting curved platesprings, said spring holders and compressors having guide-ribs and the springs having notches engaging the guide-ribs on the spring holders and compressors, substantially as specified.

10. The friction and spring resistance draftrigging for railway-cars, comprising in combination a draw-bar, stop-castings, nesting curved plate-springs, and two movable spring holders and compressors having curved bearing-faces engaging said nesting curved platesprings, said spring holders and compressors having upper and lower guide-ribs and the springs having notches on their upper and lower edges engaging the guide-ribs on the spring holders and compressors, substantially as specified.

11. In a friction and spring resistance draftrigging for railway-cars, the combination of a draw-bar and stops, with two sets of nesting open -'ended curved plate-springs, the springs of one set alternating and intermeshing with those of the other set, and movable spring holders or compressors having bearing faces engaging said sets of nesting curved plate-springs, substantially as specified.

- 12. In afriction and spring resistance draftrigging for railway-cars, the combination with a draw-bar, stops and movable compressors actuated by the draw-bar, of two sets of cylindrical open-ended plate-springs, the springs of the one set alternating and intermeshing with those of the other, the springs of the one set frictionally sliding in respect to those of the other as they are contracted in diameter by the spring holders or compressors, substantially as specified.

JOHN F. OCONNOR. Witnesses:

H. M. MUNDAY, P. ABRAMS. 

